


Stitches

by smaragdbird



Series: Terror Rare Pair Week [24]
Category: The Terror (TV 2018)
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Canon Compliant, Illnesses, Implied Relationships, M/M, Serious Injuries
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-17
Updated: 2019-11-17
Packaged: 2021-02-08 05:14:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 503
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21470629
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/smaragdbird/pseuds/smaragdbird
Summary: Written for the Terror Rare Pair WeekCrozier takes care of Jopson when he falls ill with scurvy
Relationships: Captain Francis Crozier/Thomas Jopson
Series: Terror Rare Pair Week [24]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1542748
Kudos: 31
Collections: The Terror Rarepair Week 2019





	Stitches

Crozier had always known Jopson to be a resilient man, even before he had known to which extent so it did not surprise him that Jopson kept pulling the sledges at a point where other men would’ve collapsed long ago.

Scurvy opened up old wounds, no matter how long ago they had healed, Crozier had seen that before. In Fitzjames’ case it had been the bullet holes from China. In Jopson’s case it was the long gash on his leg that he had had since before Antarctica.

The wound must have opened a while ago and infection had set in since then. Even if they were miraculously rescued right now, Jopson would probably lose that leg, Crozier realised with a pang.

He had asked Mr Bridgens for boiled water and clean bandages. The man had more than enough on his hands and Crozier more than owed it to Jopson to take care of him as well as he could.

Jopson had tried to downplay his injury and then protested that he could bandage it himself but Crozier had ignored him on both accounts. He had lost Blanky and Fitzjames already and even if he couldn’t save Jopson, he’d rather be damned to hell than making his end any more burdensome than it had to be.

He was as careful as he could be, not wanting to cause Jopson any more pain and to distract him from it, Crozier started talking about their time in the south, sharing anecdotes about James Ross or that time he had almost been killed during Parry’s expedition because he had been too distracted by his calculations to notice the storm.

There wasn’t much rhyme or reason to the stories he was telling, and some of them Jopson had heard before, but they made him smile and distracted him from the immediate pain.

“How do you feel?” He asked after Jopson’s leg was safely cleaned and bandaged for now.

“Better.” It was a lie, but it was the expected answer in this situation. “I can walk, sir.”

“I will strap you to my back and carry you but you will not walk another step before that wound isn’t properly healed again”, Crozier threatened. “I have few enough friends, so I’ll have to take care of the few there are.”

“And who’s taking care of you?” Jopson asked. He looked genuinely worried for Crozier’s well-being and Crozier didn’t know if he wanted to strangle or to kiss him. Maybe both.

“Not you. That’s not your job anymore.”

“It hasn’t been my ‘job’ in a long time, sir.”

It was true, what Jopson had done for him had surpassed the boundaries of employment long ago. 

“Well, if you want the ‘privilege’ of taking care of me again, you’ll have to mend first, Thomas”, Crozier replied. “until then I will take care of you.”

For better or worse, he thought as he made sure the blanket covered Jopson enough to keep him warm, in sickness and health.

Until death do us part.


End file.
